Two Sides of the Bay: A Demographic Look at 78418 & Port Aransas

Local Field Notes April 2026 · Issue Nº 14
A Coastal Bend Comparison

Two Sides
of the Bay.

A look at who actually lives in two of the Coastal Bend’s most distinctive ZIP codes — Corpus Christi’s 78418 and the small island town of Port Aransas — and how their populations tell two very different stories.

The Setup

Drive south on Padre Island Drive past the JFK Causeway, and you’ve entered ZIP 78418 — Corpus Christi’s Flour Bluff and North Padre Island corridor. Keep going north up Mustang Island instead, and you’ll hit Port Aransas: a small fishing-and-tourist town that empties and fills with the seasons.

They share a coastline. They share a county line, more or less. But the people who call them home? Almost nothing alike.

By the numbers.

§ 01 — POPULATION SNAPSHOT
ZIP 78418 · Nueces County

Flour Bluff &
North Padre Island

A working coastal suburb.

31,787 Total Population
41.5 Median Age
$91.4k Median Household Income
12,654 Households
  • Gender51.3% M / 48.7% F
  • White72.5%
  • Hispanic / Latino27.9%
  • Foreign Born7.4%
  • Bachelor’s or Higher29.1%
  • Poverty Rate~9.5%
  • Avg Household Size2.50
  • Land Area43.5 sq mi
Port Aransas · Mustang Island

Port Aransas,
Texas

An island in slow tides.

3,788 Total Population
53.5 Median Age
$88.3k Median Household Income
1,500 Households
  • Gender49.5% M / 50.5% F
  • White86–88%
  • Hispanic / Latino~4.5–11%
  • Foreign Born~3.7%
  • Bachelor’s or Higher~37%
  • Poverty Rate~7.4%
  • Avg Household Size2.0
  • Land Area8.81 sq mi

Where they diverge.

The headline differences, side by side.

Metric 78418 Port Aransas
Population Scale 31,787 3,788
Median Age 41.5 53.5
Residents 65+ ~19% ~32%
Hispanic / Latino 27.9% ~4.5–11%
Bachelor’s Degree+ 29.1% ~37%
Avg Household Size 2.50 2.00
Population Density ~730 / sq mi ~470 / sq mi
Annual Growth Rate ~1–2% ~4.8%

78418 is families, schools, and military households — a coastal Texas suburb still raising kids. Port Aransas is retirees, second homes, and small-business owners — an island that emptied after Harvey and is rebuilding fast.

— The Big Picture

Sources · U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2020 Decennial Census · Population Estimates Program

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